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[[File:Exai.jpg|alt=cover art|thumb|WARP234]]
{{Infobox
'''''Exai''''' is the eleventh album by [[Autechre]]. It was originally released on February 7th, 2013 on [https://warp.net/ Warp Records].<!-- There's some nuances to this, note the different releases dates depending on format, and also the fact that the order for L-event and Exai was reversed (see also the theory that the album cover encodes the release date) -->
|title=Exai
|artist=[[Autechre]]
|cover=Exai.jpg
|date=7 February 2013 <small>(Digital)</small><br>4 March 2013 <small>(LP/CD)</small>
|label=Warp Records (WARP234)
|previous=[[Move Of Ten]]
|previous year=2010
|next=[[L-event]]
|next year=2013
}}'''''Exai''''' is the eleventh studio album by [[Autechre]] released on [https://warp.net/ Warp Records]. It was originally released on February 7th, 2013.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|link=https://bleep.com/release/41081-autechre-exai|title=Autechre - Exai.|website=Bleep|accessdate=19 March 2024}}</ref><!-- There's some nuances to this, note the different releases dates depending on format, and also the fact that the order for L-event and Exai was reversed (see also the theory that the album cover encodes the release date) -->


''Exai'' was made using much of the same setup and process that were used for ''[[Oversteps]] --'' mostly Max-made with edited live jams and some planned compositions. [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D205][https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D248]
== History ==
''Exai'' was made using much of the same setup and process that were used for ''[[Oversteps]] --'' mostly made in Max either as a planned composition or a live jam that later got edited down.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|205}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AAA doc|248}}</ref> Many of the tracks on ''Exai'' were from trial runs of The System they were building for live shows.<ref>[[Exploring the parameter space: A conversation with Autechre, October 2023]]</ref><ref>{{Cite interview|page=Sean Twitch AMA, June 2022|quote=So when we did Exai, that was what we designed the rig for, but we kind of, we knew that if we could just nail our transitional bits and make it work properly, that we'd be able to use it to do, effectively, live albums like that.}}</ref>
 
The tracks were initially grouped together into a series of 12-inch records, but then when the main record was being compiled, one of those records split off and became ''[[L-event]].'' However, Sean noted that they saw that EP "as interchangeable with any of the 12"s in exai (which we see as a box of four 12"s)".<ref name=":1">{{Cite AAA doc|118}}</ref>
 
''Exai'' was finished around late-2011, before Max 6 was released.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=836}}</ref><ref>https://imgur.com/a/sean-ae-mastodon-2024-09-05-exai-system-revisions-https-post-lurk-org-sean-ae-113084494966085439-Fb6wPfy</ref> Sean noted in a 2016 interview that "everything was two or three years old when [''Exai''] came out."<ref>{{Cite interview|page=Autechre: elseq et al, June 2016|quote='''Sean Booth''': Exai was definitely talked about as an album for a year before its release, and everything was two or three years old when it came out.}}</ref>
 
On September 22, 2012, [[The Designers Republic]] posted an announcement that they were starting design work on the new Autechre album.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|647}}</ref><ref>https://forum.watmm.com/topic/75775-autechre-exai/#comments</ref><!-- try to find the original post, i want the funny "listen to track 4 now ..." --> The album was properly announced on December 13, 2012 to be released March 5th, 2013.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20121213200341/http://warp.net/records/autechre/exai</ref><ref>https://pitchfork.com/news/48942-autechre-announce-new-two-hour-long-album/</ref> However, the album unexpectedly released early as a digital download on February 7th, 2013.<ref name=":0" /><ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20130211003446/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/download-exai-now</ref><ref name=":2">https://www.factmag.com/2013/02/07/autechre-releases-new-album-a-month-early/</ref><!-- likely a leak, AGAIN --> The deluxe vinyl and CD would come out as per the original announced date.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20130314172515/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/exai-out-now</ref><ref name=":2" /> The initial plan was for ''L-event'' to be released before ''Exai'', however Warp switched around the release dates.<ref name=":1" /> Alongside the release were two 10-hour Mixlr webcasts that were streamed on March 2nd and 3rd respectively.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20130303011537/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/autechre-radio-exai</ref>
 
=== Design ===
The cover artwork is a heavily stylized/pixelated rendering of the text “''Exai''”.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=682}}</ref> It is also exactly 11 by 11 pixels large, furthering the "eleven" motif in the album. Ian Anderson described the design as "abstracted E, X, A and I letterforms as redacted architectural plans or elevations. Or maybe maps. The inners are simply A to F as typo­graphical ruins."<ref>"Exai". ''The Designers Republic''. https://www.thedesignersrepublic.com/exai. Accessed 19 Sep 2024.</ref>


== Tracks ==
== Tracks ==
=== FLeure===
=== FLeure===


* The original titling is "FLeure", uppercase L, however via bleep and other streaming services it was incorrectly changed to Fleure, lowercase l. [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D1162]
* The original titling is "FLeure", however Bleep and other streaming services unintentionally changed the capitalisation to "Fleure" with a lowercase l. <ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1162}}</ref>
* FLeure was fully done in Max/MSP.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=28}}</ref>


=== irlite (get 0) ===
=== irlite (get 0) ===
Line 17: Line 37:
=== T ess xi ===
=== T ess xi ===


* The sequencing in "T ess xi" was mostly done in Logic as opposed to Max. [https://aepages.org/wiki/Hanalgig_AMA#:~:text=Hey%20since%20T%20ess%20xi%20is%20in%20here]
* The sequencing in "T ess xi" was mostly done in Logic as opposed to Max. <ref>[[Hanalgig AMA, July 2022]]</ref>
* The first track on [[Hanalgig]] is an extended outro version of "T ess xi".
* The first track on ''[[Hanalgig]]'' is "T ess xi" with a longer outro which was cut off on ''Exai.'' When asked about details, Sean noted that it was made in 2011.
* Despite the title similarities to "r ess" from ''[[Oversteps]]'', Rob noted in the [[WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013|WATMM Ask Autechre Anything]] that they don't share meaning.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|601}}</ref><!-- im suspicious of this, it feels like a red herring by Rob to say that it doesn't share meaning IN THE WAY people are describing it, not that they don't have any connections -->
* The main harmonic progression of the track consists of a 16 bar progression which is repeated twice, after which every repetition moves the entire progression one semitone down from the previous loop. <ref>{{Cite web|author=IOS|title=T ess xi harmony|website=We Are The Music Makers|date=16 March 2019|link=https://forum.watmm.com/topic/96713-t-ess-xi-harmony/|accessdate=2 March 2024}}</ref><!-- purposefully left it incomplete because i dont know music theory. someone more component can dissect the pattern as shown by IOS in the post. -->


=== vekoS ===
=== vekoS ===
Line 26: Line 48:
=== tuinorizn ===
=== tuinorizn ===


* An earlier version of "tuinorizn" appeared in the Oversteps tour shows [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=B1505:B1506] <!-- link to a timestamp in Turin probs, same with Runrepik -->
* An early version of "tuinorizn" appeared in the [[Oversteps Tour|Oversteps tour]]<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1505}}</ref> ([https://youtu.be/dEtauI9aN1E?si=zGXHnenH1NNO5Gfx&t=4320 example])
* A common interpretation of the title is that it is phonetically pronounced like "twin horizons".
* A common interpretation of the title is that it is phonetically pronounced like "twin horizons".
* "There's glottal shit on the bas[s]line"[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D1120]
* Rob mentioned that there's "glottal shit on the bas[s]line".<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1120}}</ref>
** im not expanding on this


=== bladelores ===
=== bladelores ===


* The reverb wash that appears at the end reappeared later on "splesh" and "all end" from ''[[NTS Sessions 1-4]].''
* In a [[Autechre on Their Epic NTS Sessions, David Lynch, and Where Code Meets Music, August 2018|Pitchfork Interview in August 2018]], Autechre noted that they had a 2011 jam that later became "bladelores" <ref>[[Autechre on Their Epic NTS Sessions, David Lynch, and Where Code Meets Music, August 2018]]</ref>
* The reverb sound at the end of the track reappeared later on "splesh" and "all end" from ''[[NTS Sessions 1-4]].''
* Part of the name likely comes from lores~, a resonant lowpass filter max module.<ref>{{Cite web|link=https://docs.cycling74.com/max5/refpages/msp-ref/lores~.html|website=Cycling74|title=lores~ reference -  Max 5 Documentation|accessdate=29 March 2024}}</ref>


=== 1 1 is ===
=== 1 1 is ===
* "1 1 is" was done by Sean. <ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20240131161422/https://post.lurk.org/@sean_ae/111850811524269315</ref>


=== nodezsh ===
=== nodezsh ===
Line 41: Line 66:
=== runrepik ===
=== runrepik ===


* Alongside "tuinorizn", "runrepik" also appeared in the Oversteps tour material.[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D460]
* "runrepik" appeared in the [[Oversteps Tour|Oversteps tour]].<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=460}}</ref><!-- get example -->


=== spl9 ===
=== spl9 ===
Line 49: Line 74:
=== deco Loc ===
=== deco Loc ===


* One of the samples for "deco Loc" was found to be from a [https://vimeo.com/610474568 Bols liqueurs ad], which was uncovered via one of the 4utechre's streams.[https://www.reddit.com/r/autechre/comments/ropmcq/deco_loc_source/?rdt=40229]. The other sample is still unknown.
* The sample manipulations are achieved via a video-cut up patch made around 2005-2006 by Rob where Sean then took the patch and then "did some hip hop type stuff with it."<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20231126120035/https://post.lurk.org/@sean_ae/111475792280312902</ref> Sean noted the percussion he added was just samples of "wood and rubber." <ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=203}}</ref> One of the samples for "deco Loc" was found to be from a [https://vimeo.com/610474568 Bols liqueurs ad], which was uncovered via one of the 4utechre's streams.<ref>{{Cite web|author=TiltIfGibbersEbb|title=deco Loc source|website=Reddit|date=26 December 2021|link=https://www.reddit.com/r/autechre/comments/ropmcq/deco_loc_source/|accessdate=2 March 2024}}</ref>. The other sample is still unknown.
* The precussion itself is "wood and rubber"[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D203]
* "deco" may refer to the assembly command of the same name for "decimal output".
* "deco" may refer to the assembly command of the same name for "decimal output".


=== recks on ===
=== recks on ===
* "recks on" may be a reference to the slang term "wreck shop."<!-- i forgot where i heard this feel free to remove if too absurd -->


=== YJY UX ===
=== YJY UX ===
Line 61: Line 83:
=== 18 (keyosc) ===
=== 18 (keyosc) ===


* The track title “18 (keyosc)” is likely in reference to it being the 18th track on the album.
* The 18 is likely in reference to it being the 18th track on the Japanese issue of ''Exai''. keyosc (which can be read as key oscillator) was also speculated to be a jab at WATMM predicting the new Autechre album would be called Kiosk, which Autechre did not confirm nor deny.<ref>{{Cite AAA doc|1=1401}}</ref>


== Tracklist ==
== Tracklist ==
Line 87: Line 109:
== Trivia ==
== Trivia ==


* The sessions that spawned both ''Exai'' and ''[[L-event]]'' were initially compiled as a series of 12" records before having one of them split off into ''L-event.'' As mentioned in the WATMM ama, they saw ''Exai'' "as a box of four 12"s" with ''L-event'' being interchangable with any of them.[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XAizLmKun4yF6oBVUhIrewYN-ZiY_9ORckmT-hF93Ho/edit#gid=0&range=D118]
*A major theme of the record is the number 11, corresponding to the place in its discography. The album name itself is a phonetic spelling of “XI”, the roman numeral for eleven, as well as being an anagram of “AE XI”, meaning “Autechre eleven”, or “Autechre’s eleventh album”.
* In a recent interview, they mentioned that many of the tracks on ''Exai'' were from trial runs of The System they were building for live shows. [https://nialler9.com/autechre-conversation-about-music-art-funk-and-emotion-interview/#:~:text=So%20we%20ended%20up%20releasing%20Exai%20in%20between%2C%20which%20was%20basically%20trial%20runs%20with%20the%20system%20with%20individual%20tracks%2C%20which%20we%20then%20edited%20up%20into%20the%20tracks%20on%20the%20album.]  
 
* At just over 2 hours, ''Exai'' was by far the longest Autechre album upon release. It was quickly beaten by their next album, ''[[elseq 1-5]]'', which was more than double the length of ''Exai''.
== Links ==
* The album artwork is a heavily stylized/pixelated rendering of the text “Exai”.
 
* The album name itself is a phonetic spelling of “XI”, the roman numeral for eleven, as well as being an anagram of “AE XI”, meaning “Autechre eleven”, or “Autechre’s eleventh album”
* [https://autechre.warp.net/release/249268-autechre-exai AE_STORE]
* [https://music.apple.com/us/album/exai/596757670 Apple Music]
* [https://autechre.bandcamp.com/album/exai Bandcamp]
* [https://bleep.com/release/41081-autechre-exai Bleep]
* [https://www.discogs.com/master/519732-Autechre-Exai Discogs]
* [https://soundcloud.com/autechreofficial/sets/exai Soundcloud]
* [https://open.spotify.com/album/2lx0qyNEcAQ9y6NJrpXKjs Spotify]
 
==Credits==
*[[Autechre]] (production)
*[[Rob Brown]] (writer)
*[[Sean Booth]] (writer)
*[[Noel Summerville]] (mastering engineer)
*[[The Designers Republic]] (design) <ref>https://www.discogs.com/master/519732-Autechre-Exai</ref>
 
== References ==
<references />
[[Category:Album]]
[[Category:Album]]

Revision as of 09:37, 2 November 2024

Exai

Exai.jpg

Artist Autechre
Released 7 February 2013 (Digital)
4 March 2013 (LP/CD)
Label Warp Records (WARP234)
Move Of Ten
(2010) 		Exai L-event
(2013)

Exai is the eleventh studio album by Autechre released on Warp Records. It was originally released on February 7th, 2013.[1]

History

Exai was made using much of the same setup and process that were used for Oversteps -- mostly made in Max either as a planned composition or a live jam that later got edited down.[2][3] Many of the tracks on Exai were from trial runs of The System they were building for live shows.[4][5]

The tracks were initially grouped together into a series of 12-inch records, but then when the main record was being compiled, one of those records split off and became L-event. However, Sean noted that they saw that EP "as interchangeable with any of the 12"s in exai (which we see as a box of four 12"s)".[6]

Exai was finished around late-2011, before Max 6 was released.[7][8] Sean noted in a 2016 interview that "everything was two or three years old when [Exai] came out."[9]

On September 22, 2012, The Designers Republic posted an announcement that they were starting design work on the new Autechre album.[10][11] The album was properly announced on December 13, 2012 to be released March 5th, 2013.[12][13] However, the album unexpectedly released early as a digital download on February 7th, 2013.[1][14][15] The deluxe vinyl and CD would come out as per the original announced date.[16][15] The initial plan was for L-event to be released before Exai, however Warp switched around the release dates.[6] Alongside the release were two 10-hour Mixlr webcasts that were streamed on March 2nd and 3rd respectively.[17]

Design

The cover artwork is a heavily stylized/pixelated rendering of the text “Exai”.[18] It is also exactly 11 by 11 pixels large, furthering the "eleven" motif in the album. Ian Anderson described the design as "abstracted E, X, A and I letterforms as redacted architectural plans or elevations. Or maybe maps. The inners are simply A to F as typo­graphical ruins."[19]

Tracks

FLeure

  • The original titling is "FLeure", however Bleep and other streaming services unintentionally changed the capitalisation to "Fleure" with a lowercase l. [20]
  • FLeure was fully done in Max/MSP.[21]

irlite (get 0)

prac-f

jatevee C

T ess xi

  • The sequencing in "T ess xi" was mostly done in Logic as opposed to Max. [22]
  • The first track on Hanalgig is "T ess xi" with a longer outro which was cut off on Exai. When asked about details, Sean noted that it was made in 2011.
  • Despite the title similarities to "r ess" from Oversteps, Rob noted in the WATMM Ask Autechre Anything that they don't share meaning.[23]
  • The main harmonic progression of the track consists of a 16 bar progression which is repeated twice, after which every repetition moves the entire progression one semitone down from the previous loop. [24]

vekoS

Flep

tuinorizn

  • An early version of "tuinorizn" appeared in the Oversteps tour[25] (example)
  • A common interpretation of the title is that it is phonetically pronounced like "twin horizons".
  • Rob mentioned that there's "glottal shit on the bas[s]line".[26]

bladelores

  • In a Pitchfork Interview in August 2018, Autechre noted that they had a 2011 jam that later became "bladelores" [27]
  • The reverb sound at the end of the track reappeared later on "splesh" and "all end" from NTS Sessions 1-4.
  • Part of the name likely comes from lores~, a resonant lowpass filter max module.[28]

1 1 is

  • "1 1 is" was done by Sean. [29]

nodezsh

runrepik

spl9

cloudline

deco Loc

  • The sample manipulations are achieved via a video-cut up patch made around 2005-2006 by Rob where Sean then took the patch and then "did some hip hop type stuff with it."[31] Sean noted the percussion he added was just samples of "wood and rubber." [32] One of the samples for "deco Loc" was found to be from a Bols liqueurs ad, which was uncovered via one of the 4utechre's streams.[33]. The other sample is still unknown.
  • "deco" may refer to the assembly command of the same name for "decimal output".

recks on

YJY UX

18 (keyosc)

  • The 18 is likely in reference to it being the 18th track on the Japanese issue of Exai. keyosc (which can be read as key oscillator) was also speculated to be a jab at WATMM predicting the new Autechre album would be called Kiosk, which Autechre did not confirm nor deny.[34]

Tracklist

# Title Length
1 FLeure 4:51
2 irlite (get 0) 10:01
3 prac-f 4:20
4 jatevee C 4:14
5 T ess xi 6:43
6 vekoS 6:42
7 Flep 6:43
8 tuinorizn 3:40
9 bladelores 12:19
10 1 1 is 7:18
11 nodezsh 8:40
12 runrepik 4:35
13 spl9 7:06
14 cloudline 10:13
15 deco Loc 5:27
16 recks on 9:21
17 YJY UX 8:24
2:00:39
18 18 (keyosc) [Japanese CD exclusive] 8:57
Total 2:09:36

Trivia

  • A major theme of the record is the number 11, corresponding to the place in its discography. The album name itself is a phonetic spelling of “XI”, the roman numeral for eleven, as well as being an anagram of “AE XI”, meaning “Autechre eleven”, or “Autechre’s eleventh album”.

Links

Credits

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Autechre - Exai.". Bleep, https://bleep.com/release/41081-autechre-exai. Accessed 19 March 2024.
  2. ↑ Q205, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  3. ↑ Q248, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  4. ↑ Exploring the parameter space: A conversation with Autechre, October 2023
  5. ↑ Sean Twitch AMA, June 2022. "So when we did Exai, that was what we designed the rig for, but we kind of, we knew that if we could just nail our transitional bits and make it work properly, that we'd be able to use it to do, effectively, live albums like that."
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Q118, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  7. ↑ Q836, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  8. ↑ https://imgur.com/a/sean-ae-mastodon-2024-09-05-exai-system-revisions-https-post-lurk-org-sean-ae-113084494966085439-Fb6wPfy
  9. ↑ Autechre: elseq et al, June 2016. "Sean Booth: Exai was definitely talked about as an album for a year before its release, and everything was two or three years old when it came out."
  10. ↑ Q647, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  11. ↑ https://forum.watmm.com/topic/75775-autechre-exai/#comments
  12. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20121213200341/http://warp.net/records/autechre/exai
  13. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/news/48942-autechre-announce-new-two-hour-long-album/
  14. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130211003446/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/download-exai-now
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 https://www.factmag.com/2013/02/07/autechre-releases-new-album-a-month-early/
  16. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130314172515/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/exai-out-now
  17. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20130303011537/http://warp.net:80/records/autechre/autechre-radio-exai
  18. ↑ Q682, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  19. ↑ "Exai". The Designers Republic. https://www.thedesignersrepublic.com/exai. Accessed 19 Sep 2024.
  20. ↑ Q1162, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  21. ↑ Q28, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  22. ↑ Hanalgig AMA, July 2022
  23. ↑ Q601, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  24. ↑ IOS. "T ess xi harmony". We Are The Music Makers, 16 March 2019, https://forum.watmm.com/topic/96713-t-ess-xi-harmony/. Accessed 2 March 2024.
  25. ↑ Q1505, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  26. ↑ Q1120, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  27. ↑ Autechre on Their Epic NTS Sessions, David Lynch, and Where Code Meets Music, August 2018
  28. ↑ "lores~ reference - Max 5 Documentation". Cycling74, https://docs.cycling74.com/max5/refpages/msp-ref/lores~.html. Accessed 29 March 2024.
  29. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240131161422/https://post.lurk.org/@sean_ae/111850811524269315
  30. ↑ Q460, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  31. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20231126120035/https://post.lurk.org/@sean_ae/111475792280312902
  32. ↑ Q203, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  33. ↑ TiltIfGibbersEbb. "deco Loc source". Reddit, 26 December 2021, https://www.reddit.com/r/autechre/comments/ropmcq/deco_loc_source/. Accessed 2 March 2024.
  34. ↑ Q1401, WATMM Ask Autechre Anything, November 2013
  35. ↑ https://www.discogs.com/master/519732-Autechre-Exai
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